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Format
The following items show the format of the Biographical precis in the barest form. Compare the form to the examples provided to see how information is made to fill out the format. This is a rather rigid format, but you must be flexible enough to make it adapt to the situations of your intended subject. For instance, some notable philosophers (e.g. Socrates and Jesus) did not write anything at all. So sentence 2 will be difficult to satisfy. Instead, one must note what writing about that person provides us with the historical record.

Items 1 and 3 (a,b,c) are interdependent. In the first sentence, the major fields of influence are noted. Some people are important in one area, others in several. Each area of significant influence must be explained, so the sentence(s) in 3 (a,b,c) expand to accommodate the fields noted in sentence one. Linus Pauling, for instance, won the Nobel Prize in chemistry for his work on the chemical bond, and later the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to establish an international nuclear test ban treaty. Those are clearly two important and distinct areas of accomplishment. In a biographical precis on Pauling, we would note both honors in sentence 1, then each in turn in sentence 3a and 3b.

In the second sentence, the task is to list the individual's significant works. The first type of work to come to mind is the book. But many important people produced value by other means than writing. Actors, explorers, political figures, and an endless variety of others, have influences on the world by many means. The means of action, is what is meant here by the work. You will find that most (but not all) philosophers operate by writing. Some adventurous contemporaries philosophers are even having impact by creating websites :)

A rhetorically accurate verb is an action word that describes what kind of action the individual performed that created their influence. Here are some examples of rhetorically accurate verbs in use.
   Ayn Rand championed radical capitalism
   Douglas Engelbart invented the computer mouse
   Galileodiscovered sunspots
   Mohammad founded Islam
   Salk cured smallpox
    Jimi Hendrix redefined the electric guitar
Please note that the descriptions are minimal here and not exemplary of what should be in a biographical precis. See the examples provided for fuller clarification.